Heat-shrinkable packaging articles have been used for the packaging of a variety of products. Food, particularly meat, has been vacuum packaged in such packaging articles. Heat-shrinkable packaging articles have developed higher impact strength and higher seal strength, while simultaneously becoming easier to seal, having improved oxygen and moisture barrier properties, and having higher total free shrink at lower temperatures. High seal strength, high impact strength, and high puncture-resistance are particularly important for the packaging of fresh meat products, as leaking packages are less desirable to consumers and retailers alike. Moreover, leaking packages reduce shelf life by allowing atmospheric oxygen and microbes to enter the package.
As a result, vacuum packaged products, particularly packages for vacuum packaged food, are frequently difficult to open. Typically, knives and scissors are used for opening the packaging articles that have been evacuated, sealed around, and shrunken against the food product in the package. The use of knives and scissors to open these tough packaging articles increases the risk of injury for consumers and retailers. Moreover, the opening of such tough packaging requires more time and effort due to the toughness of the shrunken packaging article, and can also result in damage to the product inside the package. The marketplace desires a tough, heat-shrinkable packaging article that can be opened quickly and easily, without the need for knives and scissors, so that the product can be easily removed from the packaging article, without damage to the product or injury to a person opening the package.